The middle aged and older crowd treated singer/composer Paul Anka like a rock star Sunday night at the Sands Bethlehem Event Center. They high fived him as he strutted through the nearly full room. They stood and cheered and waved their arms in the air during songs. As the encore approached, they rushed the stage.

And Anka was deserving of the adoration. For about two hours, he gave a tour of his extensive catalog of popular songs, singing everything from ballads to Latin-flavored tunes to a little rockabilly. His 71-year-old voice is solid and vibrant, his wit sharp and his energy seemingly boundless.

Morning Call file photo by Douglas Kilpatrick

A 13-piece big band gave Anka’s music the appropriate zest and the result was a set that was both rousing and stirring.

And he was the consummate host – thanking the crowd, praising the Sands venue, honoring the armed forces for Memorial Day.

This was Anka’s third visit to the Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem – the first two times were in an outdoor tent before the new venue was built.

That the concert was so good shouldn’t have been a surprise. Morning Call music writer John Moser gave Anka’s concert an honorable mention on his list of Top Concerts for 2011 and he attended 165 shows that year.

Sunday’s concert had that something special from beginning to end. It opened with a black and white film showing Anka as a teenage singing idol in the late 1950s and early 1960s juxtaposed with the Anka of today commenting on those times. After five minutes or so, the on screen Anka put on his jacket as if he was ready to roll. And with that he appeared in the back of the hall, singing his classic early hit “Diana” as he made his way down the center aisle to the stage, stopping to shake hands and singing atop a platform at the end of an aisle.

On stage, he quickly followed with “For Once in My Life” and “You Are My Destiny.” The songs are decades old, but Anka made them feel contemporary.

Anka was a name dropper. He sang “Mack the Knife” as a tribute to his old friend Bobby Darin. He sat at the piano and performed “This Is It,” a song he wrote with Michael Jackson. At one point, we heard Jackson singing the song. And he sang “I’m Not Anyone” with Sammy Davis Jr., who appeared on the big screen.

The crowd enjoyed singing along and Anka encouraged it. On “Put Your Hand on My Shoulder,” Anka took a spin on the floor with a woman in the front row named Theresa. On “Puppy Love,” he took a picture of himself for an audience member and spoke on someone’s phone.

Anka managed to be both light and serious, sometimes for the same song. He introduced the poignant theme song he wrote for the war film “The Longest Day” with a joke.

“I remember the day I wrote it. I was sittting in this foxhole on the beaches of Normandy. Back in 1962,” he deadpanned.

In one segment, he sat at the piano and told joke after joke before actually performing a song. He joked about politics – Politicians are promising change, he said, but “the way the economy is going, change is the only kind of cash we’ll have left.” He joked about religion – “I went to confession. I went to the priest. I was so confused. I said you first.”

In another segment, he sat in the middle of three guitarists in his band and they played a couple rollicking numbers, including “It Doesn’t Matter Anymore,” a song Anka wrote for Buddy Holly recorded just before his untimely death.

Anka also gave the spotlight to some of his band. His young violinist soloed on “Jubilation,” a song Anka wrote for Barbra Streisand. Music director and saxophonist John Cross offered plaintive saxophone on the ballad “Do I Love You?” Drum solos punctuated the closing numbers.

As Anka neared the end of the concert, he performed the anxiously awaited “My Way,” a song he wrote for Frank Sinatra that became one of his biggest hits. And he finished by returning to the beginning with a few lines of “Diana.”

Well, actually, he finished by basking in the applause of the crowd for about five minutes.

He's the best! Always has been and always will be.
He is dearly loved by those of us who have been devoted to him since "Diana" and "Puppy Love". A top-notch performer every time in every way when he does it "his way". Very classy!

Posted By: carol birkas | May 29, 2012 12:01:36 PM

Paul Anka was one of my favorite in the sixties I do remember Lonely Boy There is also I Don't Want To Sleep Alone

Posted By: Jean Marc David | May 29, 2012 12:46:50 PM

Paul Anka, One of the Greatest of all Time. Such a talented and nice man. I am proud to say I had the pleasure of seeing him in concert twice. I have been a fan of his since 1957. I wish the entertainers of today would set such a good example . They all could learn alot from Paul Anka.

Posted By: Bruce Dubey | May 29, 2012 3:29:41 PM

my wife and i saw paul anka at the sands on May 28, 2012. We both agreed that this was the BEST Show that either of us had ever seen!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We would go to see him over and over again!!!!!!!!! He has a GREAT voice and is a true entertainer. BRAVO.

Posted By: Ed and Mary Jo Schreiber | May 30, 2012 9:36:50 PM

Was president of PAUL ANKA FAN CLUB from the very beginning,so I had the priviledge of meeting and talking with him many many times.He always made himself available to his fans always personable and kind and of course the most talented performer a legend.He just gets better as time goes on.

Posted By: Cecil Ross | Jul 25, 2012 1:41:12 PM

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JOHN J. MOSER has been around long enough to have seen the original Ramones in a small club in New Jersey, U2 from the fourth row of a theater and Bob Dylan's born-again tours. But he also has the number for All-American Rejects' Nick Wheeler on his cell phone, wrote the first story ever done on Jack's Mannequin and hung out in Wiz Khalifa's hotel room.

OTHER CONTRIBUTORS

JODI DUCKETT: As The Morning Call's assistant features editor responsible for entertainment, she spends a lot of time surveying the music landscape and sizing up the Valley's festivals and club scene. She's no expert, but enjoys it all — especially artists who resonated in her younger years, such as Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young, Tracy Chapman, Santana and Joni Mitchell.

KATHY LAUER-WILLIAMS enjoys all types of music, from roots rock and folk to classical and opera. Music has been a constant backdrop to her life since she first sat on the steps listening to her mother’s Broadway LPs when she was 2. Since becoming a mother herself, she has become well-versed on the growing genre of kindie rock and, with her son in tow, can boast she has seen a majority of the current kid’s performers from Dan Zanes to They Might Be Giants.

STEPHANIE SIGAFOOS: A Jersey native raised in Northeast PA, she was reared in a house littered with 8-tracks, 45s and cassette tapes of The Beatles, Elvis, Meatloaf and Billy Joel. She also grew up on the sounds of Reba McEntire, Garth Brooks and Tim McGraw and can be found traversing the countryside in search of the sounds of a steel guitar. A fan of today's 'new country,' she digs mainstream/country-pop crossovers like Lady Antebellum and Sugarland and other artists that illustrate the genre's diversity.